Open Call From the Patent Office — The government is about to start opening up the process of reviewing patents to the modern font of wisdom: the Internet. — The Patent and Trademark Office is starting a pilot project that will not only post patent applications on the Web and invite comments …

The 50 Most Important People on the Web — Despite what Time magazine would have you believe, you are not the most powerful or influential person on the Web. At PC World we love online personals, social networks, and videos of people falling on their keisters as much as the next person …

Google Personalized Search, Google Bookmarks & Link Building — There's been a bit of a panic among some SEOs that the ramp up of Google Personalized Search Results last month will mean the end of SEO. But aside from the impact personalized search will have on SEO, personalized search also impacts link building related activities.

The Real Google Phone — Andy Rubin has a team of about 100 people at Google working on the Google Phone. So people have been paying attention. Andy was the founder of Danger and later Android, which he sold to Google in August of 2005. Andy is a systems guy and so it's a good bet …

Second Life's looming tax threat — Come April 15 profits earned online must be reported to the IRS. But what about 'money' that's virtual? — NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — In case you haven't noticed, Second Life is booming, and its economy has boomed too - putting the virtual reality world …

Another Stanford University Startup coming September 2007 — You know it as the birthplace of HP, Yahoo, Google, Sun, and Cisco, among others. — But coming in September 2007 another kind of startup is coming to Stanford University: a new Scoble! Yeah, Maryam and I are expecting a new child.

A Richer Trip to the Mall, Guided by Text Messages — SEARCH engines made it easy to find items at online stores. Now the Internet is poised to solve a more vexing problem: finding items while you are at the mall. — Technology companies like NearbyNow of Los Altos, Calif. …

Google moves YouTube ahead — Since the acquisition, more deals struck for video, though copyright issues remain — In a clip posted on YouTube shortly after Google said it was acquiring the popular online video site for a whopping $1.65 billion, YouTube co-founders Chad Hurley …

Resident Evil Outbreak Going Offline — Another PlayStation 2 online game bites the dust. Not long after an announcement from Konami that revealed the online portion of Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence would be shuttered comes word from Capcom that servers for both Resident Evil Outbreak …

ODF threat to Microsoft in US governments grows — California has introduced a bill to make open document format (ODF) a mandatory requirement for agencies when acquiring software, turning up the heat on Microsoft. The bill follows similar legislation in Texas and Minnesota and adds further …

Windows fails second virus test — Microsoft's Live OneCare security software has failed tests which check how well it spots and stops malicious programs designed to attack Windows. — OneCare was the only failure among 17 anti-virus programs tested by the AV Comparatives organisation.

Five Principles to Design By — I recently wrote these into my about page: five principles that I design by. — Technology Serves Humans. — Too often people blame themselves for the shortcomings of technology. When their computer crashes, they say "I must have done something dumb".

Costly Red Campaign Reaps Meager $18 Million — Bono & Co. Spend up to $100 Million on Marketing, Incur Watchdogs' Wrath — COLUMBUS, Ohio (AdAge.com) — It's been a year since the first Red T-shirts hit Gap shelves in London, and a parade of celebrity-splashed events has followed …

Patent Fights Are a Legacy of MP3's Tangled Origins — Microsoft says it was doing the right thing: paying a German rights holder $16 million to license the MP3 audio format, the foundation of the digital music boom. Then an American jury ruled that Microsoft had failed to pay another MP3 patent holder …